


curtain call

by saoire



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drabble, Goodbyes, Hurt/Comfort, Wild (Linked Universe)-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-28
Updated: 2020-02-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:55:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22942900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saoire/pseuds/saoire
Summary: All adventures must come to an end.(A Linked Universe drabble)
Relationships: Four & Hyrule & Legend & Sky & Time & Twilight & Warriors & Wild & Wind (Linked Universe), Twilight & Wild (Linked Universe)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 159





	curtain call

In the end, Sky had been the one to finish it. Drove his sword hilt deep into the belly of the beast with a furious scream and thumping heart.

It marked the end of their journey together. The ever looming evil had been vanquished after a long, grim battle and Hyrule past and present had been saved once again by its dedicated guardians. Four years of travelling alongside each other was coming to a close, and it was time they went their separate ways.

It had been an incredible adventure for all nine heroes. They’d bonded with each other in ways they never would have imagined at the beginning of their quest. Even the most reserved or distant of the group had found family amongst them.

And now they were faced with goodbye.

They’d come together on the quiet space of the battlefield. Wounds were patched up, broken bones were delicately wrapped, and potions were drunk. The heroes had lapsed into a solemn and heavy silence as they hovered around the clearing unsure of how to start.

“I’ve dealt with the subject of travelling time quite a bit during my adventures,” Time began as he glared down to the dirt floor, “and I’ve been thinking over this for a while now. When we return to our eras I doubt that we’ll remember this adventure.”

His statement was meant with downturned looks and stoney silence. None of the Links had wanted to address the matter, but they had all had the same thoughts during the quest.

The moment they return home, the past four years of their life’s and their impromptu family gets left behind.

“I hate that you’re right, but it makes the most sense,” Warriors spoke up from beside Time’s left, “No one has ever mentioned this adventure in any of our pasts. Stories should spread of the heroes coming together to fight for Hyrule, but there isn’t any. I’d say the timelines have been too altered for any of us to retain memories of this, unfortunately.”

“So what? We just go home like none of this ever happened?” Legend remarked with a bitter tone.

“Most likely.”

“Well that’s bullshit. I don’t want to forget any of this!” The group was surprised to hear Wild snap in anger. He was usually the most guarded with his emotions.

“Cub-”

“No! We’ve spent the last four years of our lives fighting to protect Hyrule. We’ve dedicated ourselves and our lives so that everyone else can live theirs in safety and peace. The least Hylia can do is let us remember it!”

With that, he stomped away into the tree line.

Twilight was quick to stand and follow him despite his leg injury. There was no way he could let Wild be alone right now. Not with how he looked when he turned, the tears that welled in his eyes and the quickened breath.

He stumbled across him minutes later sitting on the bank of a river. Twilight could see just how much his body was shaking despite being further away. Of course it had hit Wild harder than most, he’d only come to terms with his previous memory loss a couple months ago.

He’d made a point of having his presence known before he sat down beside Wild. Gave him every chance to turn him down as he delicately wrapped his arms around him and just held him as he shook.

And maybe Twilight shed a few of his own tears too, but Wild didn’t have to know. No one wanted to forget the bonds they’d forged and experiences they’d shared. Even the worst parts of their journey were deeply important to all of them.

“I don’t want to forget you. I can’t do this again. Can’t go back to being alone,” Wild spoke shakily as he pulled back from Twilight’s hold. “This isn’t fair.”

“No, none of this is fair. If there were some way I could stop this I would, but the times we’ve had, eh? I think they’ve been some of the best years of my life.”

Twilight thought back over the past four years with a fond smile and a rosy heart. There had been times when the group of nine heroes had butted heads in the worst of ways. Said things they never meant or lashed out without a second thought. 

But at the end of the day, they were still brothers. One big family that had been pulled together across time to unite under one goal. One that would always have the others back no matter what.

Because family is so much more than blood. 

Sometimes it’s a seasoned pirate with a quick sailors tongue who pours his heart into every task he’s given,

a fairy with a humble desire to explore the unknown,

a snarky and caring hoarder who fears vulnerability,

a skilled tactician with a knack for lifting anyone’s spirits with his words,

a courageous blacksmith with an iron will and a small secret,

a man of the Skies with a soft heart and an envious ability to nap anywhere he lay his head,

an experienced hero with a weakness for awful dad jokes,

a modest ranch hand who would gladly lay down his life for his family,

and an amnesiac with a desire for adventure and no sense of self preservation. 

“We may forget the adventure but feelings can never be erased, Cub. I want you to know that you were loved so, so much even if you can’t remember us. You have a family across history that supports and cares for you unconditionally.”

He could only look at Twilight dumbfounded by his words.

“No one likes endings, Wild,” Time called out from the edge of the forest. The others followed behind him as he joined the pair at the riverbank, “But without them, nothing can truly start again. Happiness will follow no matter how lonely it gets.”

Wild turned to look down at his hands, a sad smile playing on his lips. They were right. Like with the previous Champions, memories fade and become victims to time but emotions transcend that. They could span milenia unhindered, lingering safely below the surface.

And it was then that he noticed his hands slowly becoming transparent.

“I think this is it for me. I’m first to say goodbye.” He stood up facing the group, his smile turning determined, “Thank you all for everything. I don’t have the time nor the words to express how much you’ve all done for me and how much it’s meant.

I love you all more than you’ll ever know. Thank you, and goodbye.”

And with a chorus of tear filled replies, the world before Wild disappeared in a flash of bright light.

His journey was over.

And the birds still sang, the wind still swept between the trees, and time still marched on. 

He woke up in his little lonely house in the corner of the town of Hateno to an empty space and a heavy silence. The tears that freely flowed down his cheeks were ones he could never explain.

And the hero's life continued as it always had in the wilds of Hyrule; alone.

Though hope was always to follow. Sometimes things get lost, memories slip away like sand to time. But sometimes, some lucky times, they can be recovered.

And sometimes all it took was a photo taken in a long forgotten land of a group who had found family in each other.

**Author's Note:**

> oof so this wasn’t read over, i apologise if there’s any mistakes. this was written in the space of like an hour because i’m a slut for endings and was in the mood to write so, hope you enjoyed 😔✌️


End file.
